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Review

I really enjoyed this book! It’s a somewhat dark YA fantasy story featuring magic, mystery, action and adventure, and even a bit of romance.

The story is set in Ravka, a very Russian-like nation that is being destroyed by ‘The Shadow Fold’ – a terrible blackness swarming with evil creatures that is taking over the land.

Alina and her best friend, Mal, were raised together in an orphanage. Living a somewhat unremarkable life, they have always had each other, and while Alina has some serious feelings for Mal, he is unintentionally pulling away from her. They are undertaking their mandatory military service when in a moment of pure terror, Alina unleashes a power she never knew she had, a power that is unprecedented, and which brings her to the attention of The Darkling.

The Darkling is the leader and most powerful of the Grisha – a group of people who hold magical powers, and who are revered because of it. Suddenly discovering that she is one of them, Alina is whisked away to the palace become a part of the mysterious Grisha, to train with them, learn how to control her power and, hopefully, be the one to destroy the Shadow Fold and save Ravka.

We follow Alina as she is thrust into life at Court, which is unlike anything she has ever known. And in between her loneliness for Mal and her old life, high-school-ish bitchiness and more than one sinister and creepy encounter, she finds moments of happiness with her new friends and the eerily seductive Darkling. Given the opportunity to explore her power for the first time in her life, Alina eventually starts to thrive in her new environment.

But underneath it all, there is an epic power struggle at play, and with Alina not knowing who to trust, the lines between good and evil are blurred, and she finds herself in immense danger in the fight for not only her life, but the lives of those she loves and the future of her entire nation.

This is a great start to what I hope will be an exciting series. Alina is a great heroine, I enjoyed watching her growth as a character, and I loved her interplay with the rest of the characters. Yes there is a bit of romance, and while it’s definitely not a major focus, it was enough to keep the romance-lover in my satisfied. I love the element of mystery in the book, where we aren’t quite sure what’s actually happening, who to trust, and where the story was going. My emotions were up and down, and I was excited to see how it was all going to play out.

The book ends well, and while not a cliffhanger, there is definitely a lot more to come, and I can’t wait to see what happens from here.

4 stars.

 

Shadow and Bone